Miss America helps nab online predators

UPI News Service, 04/25/2007

Four New York-area men are in custody after Miss America, Lauren Nelson, helped police by posing as a young teenager in an online chat room.

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Working with Suffolk County Police on Long Island, Nelson invited the men individually to show up at a house for a meeting. When they arrived, police were waiting for them along with John Walsh, host of "America's Most Wanted" TV show.

The special episode featuring the Internet sting will air Saturday night.

Nelson provided photos of herself when she was 14 to police to post online, and all of her exchanges with the men were monitored by officers, Newsday reported.

When the Oklahoma native was crowned Miss America in Las Vegas in January, she said one of her goals was to promote Internet safety for children.